A Lesson on Presidential Power

It comes a shock to discover that liberal Hollywood has provided a powerful response to the expanded presidential power sought by Barack Obama and other progressives. Steven Spielberg has produced a cinematic powerhouse, Lincoln, in which our 16th President utters an intriguing soliloquy: Lincoln expresses his doubts about the legality of the Emancipation Proclamation as it pertains to the freedom of slaves in the Border States and whether it can endure after the cessation of hostilities. He goes on to explain that this is the rationale for pursuing the Thirteenth Amendment despite the political costs. He seeks to use Constitutional means to achieve a political end, not to circumvent our founding document. More surprisingly, this portrayal is based upon liberal historian Doris Kearns Goodwin's 2005 book, Team of Rivals
Lincoln's admonition to Republican supporters, radical and conservative, comes with an acknowledgement of the severe limits placed upon him during peacetime. His power...(Read Full Article)